Designated as a town in 1850, Zamboanguita was initially under the spiritual administration of Dauin until it was established as a parish by the Recollects dedicated to St. Isidore the Farmer some 15 years later.
The first Recollect missionary assigned to Zamboanguita when it became a parish on May 21, 1866 was Fr. Faustino Sanchez. He arrived in the town in December of that same year and was parish priest until September 1867.